We quieted their alarm as much as possible, advising them to stay at home and trust to fortune.

We could not imagine that the Rebels would deal severely with the inhabitants, except in cases where they had been conspicuous in the Union cause.
Some of the people took our advice, unloaded their wagons, and waited for further developments.

Others persisted in their determination to leave.

They knew the Rebels better than we, and hesitated to trust their tender mercies.

A year later we learned more of "the barbarism of Slavery." Southwest Missouri is a region of magnificent distances.